CCE Report No. 5

GENDER IN EAST AFRICA: GIRLS AGAINST THE ODDS

The Uganda Pilot Study

Gender Report 2

Alicia Fentiman, Emmanuel Kamuli and Jane Afoyocan

June 2011

Contents

Page
Section 1: Background to the Uganda pilot study Section 2: Case Study Background Section 3: Key Findings
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• Section 4: Next Steps
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20 21 22
Acknowledgements References Annex 1: Enrolment Data for Athele, Nyakasenyi, Pakwatch and Rwangara

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• 2

1. Background

1.1 Uganda – general

Uganda is a land-locked country in East Africa occupying 241,551 sq. km, 18% of which consists of open inland waters and permanent wetlands. It is bordered by Sudan to the north, Kenya to the east, Tanzania to the south, Rwanda to the southwest and the Democratic Republic of Congo to the west.
It also shares a significant part of Lake Victoria (45% of the shoreline) with Tanzania and Kenya. It has a population of 31.8 million¹ and an average annual population growth rate of 3.2%, one of the highest in the world with an average life expectancy of 53 years. The proportion of people living below the poverty line has declined from 56% in 1992 to 31% in 2005/06.² (23.3% in 2009/10 according to the Uganda National Household Survey (2010). However, there are great disparities between regions with the north suffering considerably more. The impact of two decades of civil war in Acholi and Lango sub regions witnessed great atrocities by the Lord’s Resistance Army which has had a devastating effect and impact on the lives and livelihoods of the people in the area.
Uganda’s main economic activity is agriculture (particularly coffee) and it is estimated that 88% of the population engage in subsistence agriculture. Within the last few years the

¹ Uganda Bureau of Statistics Report, 2009. ² Uganda Human Development Report 2007. UNDP.

3discovery of vast oil reserves in western Uganda near the Lake Albert River Basin has sparked great interest and could potentially have a positive impact on human development.
Uganda has experienced dramatic changes throughout the past decades and it has managed to put behind it the negative impact of the political turmoil of 1971-1985 which had a devastating effect on the country’s economic and social infrastructure. A number of reformist programmes including The Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP), Decentralisation, Poverty Action Fund (PAF), Civil Service reform and Universal Primary Education have contributed to Uganda’s progress in making significant strides in improving human development.
Significantly, Uganda is the only nation in the world which has substantially reduced its
HIV infection rates; it has dropped from a high of 18% to an estimated 6.5% since 2001.³

1.2 The education system in Uganda

Uganda’s formal education system consists of seven years of primary schooling, followed by four years of lower secondary and two years of higher secondary education. This 7-4-2 pattern is followed by three years (3-5 yrs) of tertiary education. In addition, there is an alternative path of vocational and technical schools after primary.⁴ The age of entry into primary school is 6 years. The medium of instruction is English.
Universal Primary Education was introduced in 1997 with subsequent rapid increases in primary school enrolment and the associated problems of large class sizes, pressure on infrastructure and teachers, and shortages of books and materials. In 2009 primary education enrolment increased by 3.4%, from 7.96 million pupils in 2007/08 to 8.19 million in 2009. Net primary school enrolment reached 93.2% in 2008/09, up from 84% in 2005/06. The primary education completion has also risen but remains low at 52%. According to a DFID study, “Uganda is still off track to achieve 100% primary school enrolment by 2015”.⁵
In order to make improvements in primary education, the Ministry of Education and
Sports (MoES) in partnership with donor agencies launched the Quality Enhancement Initiative (QEI) to improve the quality of primary education in 12 poorly performing districts.⁶ This initiative seeks to improve the instructional processes at school level to enable pupils to master basic literacy, numeracy and life skills.

³ UNAIDS Report on the Global Aids Epidemic, 2010.

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Nakabugo, M., Byamugisha, A. and B. Justus. 2008. Future Schooling in Uganda. CICE Hirosthima University,
Journal of International Cooperation in Education, Vol.11, No..1, pp. 55-69; Kasente, D. 2003. Gender and Education in Uganda: A case study for EFA Monitoring Report, 2003.
⁵ DFID: key facts Uganda. 2010. (http://www.dfid.gov.uk) ⁶ Ministry of Education and Sports: 2010 Policy Tracking in Selected Primary Schools in 12 QEI Districts.

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Uganda became the first African country to have free secondary education. Irrespective of this initiative, the gap between primary and secondary school enrolment remains high. It is estimated that only 25% of children make the transition from primary to secondary school. This is due to the lack of secondary school places available.

1.3 Gender within the Ugandan Education System

The Ugandan government has put in place a number of policies over the last two decades in order to foster gender parity in education. For example, the National Strategy for Girls Education was launched, together with the Promotion of Girls’ Education scheme to facilitate girl child retention and performance at primary level. The Equity in the Classroom programme is also being implemented. Some progress has been made, with the 2010 UNESCO Report showing that, like Kenya, Uganda had also achieved gender parity with respect to enrolment in primary education between 1999 and 2007, when half of all primary school enrolments were girls. With respect to secondary education, boys’ enrolment still outstrips that of girls, with only 83 girls enrolling for every 100 boys – though still a considerable improvement since 1999, when only 66 girls enrolled for every 100 boys. Beginning with the 1990/91 academic year, all female applicants to public universities were awarded 1.5 bonus points, a measure that had increased the female population of Makerere University to 41% by 2002, compared to 23% before the scheme was introduced.⁷

1.4 Selection of case studies, schools and girls

In order to study girls’ retention, the case-study areas needed to be districts where there were known to be challenges and hardships which might prevent girls from attending or continuing with school. The pilot areas were selected initially by colleagues at the University of Makerere and then through UNICEF. Research permits were obtained from the Ministry of Education and Sports, and schools were selected in discussion with relevant District Education Officers. In Nebbi, an informal interview was held with Ogen Stanislaus and in Kyenjojo with Gertrude. The aim was to choose schools which were recognised as providing a relatively high-quality education, and which had a reputation for encouraging girls’ education, and hence schools where girls were retained ‘against the odds’. In Uganda, because of the long distances involved to the two main case-study areas, no preliminary visits were made. What we did not know at

⁷ Muhwezi, D. 2003 Gender sensitive educational policy and practice: a Uganda case study (Background paper for
EFA Global Monitoring Report)

5the outset was that two of the districts we had selected had been identified in the Quality Enhancement Initiative.
Because it is known that girls begin to drop out of primary school around the age of puberty, teachers were asked to select 5 girls in Class 6, who were from backgrounds where families were poor or where education was under-valued, but who were in school and likely to continue with their education. These were girls who would be expected to be 11 years old, though in practice, because of late starts and disrupted patterns of schooling, a number of the girls proved to be several years older.
The researchers had to tread a sensitive path with respect to differentials of power and position, as well as dealing with ethical dilemmas caused when girls revealed situations which seriously affected their personal safety.

1.5 Methodology

1.5.1 Interviews with Girls in Class 6

A common interview guide was devised by those researchers directly involved in data collection, in consultation with the wider research team. This sought to obtain biographical data as well as asking questions related to the participant’s experience of schooling, the problems she faced, her aspirations and the factors which encouraged her to remain in school. Initial questions were devised to put the respondent at ease and to enable rapport to be established. The guide was modified following an initial pilot interview, and then revised at the Nairobi workshop in the light of findings following the Kenyan pilot stage.
Interviews took place in 2 schools in Uganda in December 2009, with further interviews with 10 girls in two schools in the Western Region (Kyenjojo and Ntoroko Districts), and a further 10 girls in two schools in West Nile Region (Nebbi District) in April 2010. In Uganda they were interviewed in their local language. With the exception of the initial Ugandan interviews, all interviews were audio recorded. Each interviewee was given a small gift of an exercise book and pen as a token of thanks. This report focuses only on the results from the four schools in Western Region and Western Nile.

1.5.2 Focus Group Discussions with Boys in Class 6

A focus group discussion guide was devised with boys in Class 6 in each school in order to capture their biographical data, to document their main activities, and to find out their experiences of schooling and the challenges they faced, their career aspirations and their

6perspectives of gender specific factors affecting enrolment. It was also important to gather their perspectives of what the school and teachers could do to assist them. Four focus group discussions were held during the pilot study.

1.5.3 Focus Group Discussions with Teachers

A focus group discussion guide was devised for teachers in the participating schools. The aim of the guide was to find out from their perspectives the challenges facing the school, the gender specific challenges, the strategies that the school employed in encouraging students in terms of retention and completion. In addition, their own personal experiences of teaching were recorded. The guide also provided a backdrop of the teachers’ perceptions of the communities in which the school served. In the pilot study, only three schools participated in the focus group discussions: Athele, Nyaksenyi and Pakwach. An interview with the Rwangara headteacher was conducted, but it was not possible to conduct a focus group discussion because of the shortage of teachers on the day of our visit.
Informal discussions were also held with two district education officers, Mr. Ogden
Stanislaus in Nebbi and Grace in Kyenjojo. This background information helped to provide the context of the districts and in particular to capture the challenges and constraints affecting enrolment, retention and completion in primary school.

1.5.4 Analysis

Interviews from Nebbi, Kyenjojo and Ntoroko were fully transcribed and translated, with analysis undertaken using the software package QSR NVivo 8. Analysis was first of all undertaken deductively, using the interview guide as the basis for initial coding. This was followed by inductive analysis, drawing out insights from the interviewees’ own words. Observations of the school building and its surroundings, as well as informal discussion with the Principal and teachers of each school provided contextual data and enabled a fuller understanding of data obtained through the interviews.

2.0 Case Study Background

The pilot study was conducted in four schools in three distinct districts in Western Uganda: Nebbi, Kyenjojo and Ntoroko. They vary significantly in terms of ethnicity and livelihoods. Below is a brief description of each area.

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Nebbi District

Nebbi District is located in north-western Uganda. It is bordered by the Arua District to the north, Amuru District to the east, Buliisa District to the southeast, and the Democratic Republic of Congo to the south and west. It comprises a total area of 3,288 sq. km and has an estimated population of 535,400. The district was originally divided into three counties, Padeyere, Jonam and Okoro, but Okoro County has now become a new district. The main ethnic group is Alur. The main economic activities are predominantly farming and fishing on Lake Albert and in the Lake Albert Nile. According to the District Education officer, there are 233 primary schools and 31 secondary schools. In comparison with national averages, Nebbi is more disadvantaged than other districts. For example, the pupil class ratio is 1:128 compared to the national average of 1:55. Although enrolment in primary school is increasing, the average drop-out rate for girls is 53.8% as compared to boys at 46.2%; this is a major concern.⁸ Two schools in this district participated in the study: Athele (rural) and Pakwatch (semi-urban). Athele has a population of 447 pupils with 8 teachers (7 male and 1 female) and Pakwatch has a population of 1007 children with 15 teachers (10 male and 5 female). (Annex 1 shows the enrolment by gender and class).

Kyenjojo District

Kyenjojo District is located in western Uganda. It is bordered by Kibale District to the south, Mubende District to the east, Kiruhura District to the southeast, Kamwenge District to the south and Kabarole District to the west. The district headquarters are at Kyenjojo; the district was created in 2000. It is located approximately 274 km from Kampala. It is part of the ancient Kingdom of Toro. It has an estimated population of 481,000. The main economic activities are tea plantations and farming. Nyakasenyi School which is located on the main road from Fort Portal participated in the pilot research. The school population is 671 with 10 teachers (7 female) and a female headteacher.

Ntoroko District

Ntoroko District is a new district (formerly part of Bundibugyo). It is located in western Uganda near the border of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and is at the southern most end of Lake Albert. Certain events have had a profound impact on the communities, namely the 1995 Land Act and Demarcation of the Semliki Game Reserve (this act restricted access to resources

⁸ Unpublished report from the Directorate of Education – Nebbi District Local Government.

8within the park and women, in particular, lost out). From 1997-2000, the insurgence caused mayhem and many people were displaced and there was considerable loss of life, property and food insecurity. The communities in this area are fairly heterogeneous and consist of many ethnic groups; they are a peripatetic migrant population whose major sources of livelihood are fishing around the lake, cattle rearing, local trade, and trade across the border with DRC. A government report of the district shows that poverty had prompted a number of women and teenage girls to engage in acts of prostitution and early marriages. In addition, other factors such as a high rate of theft, alcohol abuse and poor living conditions have contributed to the ‘fear’ of living in such a harsh environment. The schools in the area are understaffed and lack basic resources.⁹ Education is poor with a very high drop-out rate and a lack of secondary education.¹⁰ Rwangara School participated in the pilot. The school population is 616 pupils with 6 male teachers. It caters to a diverse and mixed community comprised of Balaalo (nomads), Batoro, Bamba, Batwa, Bakonjo and Batuku. Because of the fishing industry, Ntoroko hosts other ethnic communities from the rest of Uganda as well as the Congo.

3. Key Findings

Factors Affecting Girls’ Participation

Analysis from the interviews and focus group discussions conducted in the pilot stage of the study illustrated the diversity of factors affecting girls’ participation in the three districts. There were common constraints affecting participation of girls in all four schools such as pregnancy, early marriage, peer pressure from male peers (in and out of school youth), child labour, and poor menstruation management. However, there were also differences between the districts in terms of geography (difference between rural and urban), access and distance to schools, types of livelihood affecting participation, ethnicity, specific cultural practices, lack of parental involvement and kinship obligations. Unlike the Kajiado study, the majority of girls in Uganda seemed to lack aspiration for the future and lacked role models. This was particularly evident in two schools – Rwangara and Athele – which are remote, rural schools and where, significantly, there is a lack of female teachers. Most noticeably in Rwangara there are no female teachers because of the harsh environment, and in Athele there is only one female teacher. The lack of female teachers and the lack of female role models in the local culture appear to have a

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Bundibugyo District Report, 2003. Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development: Uganda participatory
Poverty Assessment Process.
¹⁰ Second Uganda Participatory Poverty Assessment : Bundibugyo District Report, 2003, p.12

9negative impact on girls’ motivation or aspirations beyond the community in which they live. In many instances this is exacerbated by living in difficult circumstances without close kin and the lack of support networks.

Key challenges faced by girls

Poverty was a key determinant affecting school enrolment, absenteeism and drop-out across the four pilot areas. Most respondents cited lack of money as a major factor affecting education. All the girls who participated in the study are also working children. Domestic activities are part of every day life and gender-specific tasks such as sweeping, fetching water, collecting firewood, looking after siblings, the elderly and the sick were identified as female responsibilities. In some instances, the girls had to take on the responsibility to try to earn enough money in order to pay for a school uniform, books and examination fees by selling vegetables or selling water to households. One girl in Athele (18 years) had to interrupt her schooling to assist her blind father and sell vegetables in order to pay for her uniform. She described herself as the ‘mother’ of the household. In Pakwatch, one of the interviewees fetched water and sold it for 200 shillings per jerry can (20-litre plastic can) in order to make money to buy ‘soup’ ingredients, so she could feed herself and her siblings.
A third of the girls interviewed were orphaned (in some cases due to HIV/Aids) and many lived in households without either of their parents. Many are defined as ‘double orphans’¹¹; in some instances, these children are often living with elderly grandparents or male kin members and in some cases, they are being defiled by uncles and grandparents.¹² The lack of parental support and the added responsibility of looking after elderly grandparents places extra burden on the girls.
Distance to schools was another factor affecting girls’ access to education. Some of the girls were frightened to walk to and from school. In Rwangara where children walk long distances, the girls were not only scared of being attacked and raped but also killed. (This was near the game reserve and an area where there was political conflict). In addition to walking long distances, girls complained of hunger and not having any food during the day. It was also noted that many children only have one meal a day and arrive at school hungry. The lack of food can contribute to poor performance and underachievement.¹³

¹¹ World Bank: HIV Aids Sourcebook, 2005. ¹² Field Notes from Focus group discussion with teachers, March, 2010.

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Levinger, B. 1994. Nutrition, health and education for all, UNDP. New York; Pollitt, E. 1990. Malnutrition and
Infection in the Classroom. UNESCO. Paris.

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In all four schools, sexual harassment was identified as a key challenge facing adolescent females. This is consistent with other research conducted in Uganda on the risks schoolgirls encounter.¹⁴ Some of the girls in the study were victims of sexual harassment and most cited sexual harassment and ‘bad behaviour by boys’ as challenges. They spoke of the abuse they had encountered by male peers and told harrowing tales of fending off attacks and rape. On their way to school they were often ‘bothered’ or ‘teased’ by boys and had been offered money (10,000 Ugandan shillings) in exchange for sex. Two young girls had to physically fend off their ‘attackers’ and one made a formal complaint to the police. As a result, she had to transfer to another school.
Another gender specific challenge is menstruation management. Two thirds of the girls in the study cited menstruation as affecting female enrolment and as a reason for absenteeism and drop-out. Most do not have access to sanitary pads, proper toilet facilities or access to water. Only one school, Nyakasenyi, provided an ‘emergency’ kit which provided pads and knickers to menstruating girls. They also showed the girls how to make pads from local materials.¹⁵
Engagement in certain types of livelihoods, such as fishing, was identified as a contributing factor for dropping out of school and non-enrolment. The immediate awards of fishing (money) create an environment where money is readily available and disposable. (This is combined with high alcohol consumption, prostitution and domestic violence). In addition, the lack of value placed on education by parents or guardians were other contributing factors associated with the high drop out. One teacher remarked that, “the fishing communities around the lake value money more than education.” This was confirmed by a visit to a primary school in Nebbi District (see Annex 2) where we had hoped to conduct our pilot study. However, the school had very few students in upper primary and did not even have a Class 7; therefore, it could not take part.